Anytime? Anywhere? the Seasonality of Flight Offers in Central Europe

MORAVIAN GEOGRAPHICAL REPORTS 2016, 24(4):2016, 26–37 24(4) Vol. 23/2015 No. 4 MORAVIAN MORAVIAN GEOGRAPHICAL REPORTS GEOGRAPHICAL REPORTS Institute of Geonics, The Czech Academy of Sciences journal homepage: http://www.geonika.cz/mgr.html Figures 8, 9: New small terrace houses in Wieliczka town, the Kraków metropolitan area (Photo: S. Kurek) doi: 10.1515/mgr-2016-0020 Illustrations to the paper by S. Kurek et al. Anytime? Anywhere? The seasonality of flight offers in Central Europe Stanislav KRAFT a *, Denisa HAVLÍKOVÁ a Abstract Air transport can be considered as the most dynamic transport mode during recent decades. It is an important but also responsive indicator of global social, economic, political and cultural cooperation in different areas. For this reason, air transport is a unique source of various aspects of international relations. The principal goal of this study is an analysis of seasonality in the offer of flights in Central Europe during 2014, considering the different positions and functions of the airports within the air transport system. Ten airports from the Central European region are monitored in the analysis in terms of fluctuations in flight offers and offered destinations. A synthesis of these patterns is presented as a typology of the surveyed airports using the Ossan triangle. This paper clearly shows the different patterns of the spatial and temporal organization of air transport in Central Europe. Key words: air transport, seasonality, typology of airports, Central Europe Article history: Received 19 September 2016; Accepted 15 December 2016; Published 30 December 2016 1. Introduction Central Europe represents a specific area in the The rapid development of air transport since the development of air transport. It consists of well-developed 1970s represents one of the most important signs of the countries with a high share of air transport (Germany, development of modern transport systems in the post- Austria), as well as former socialist countries with recent industrial period. It is also considered a significant sign rapid growth of air transport (Poland, Czech Republic, of globalisation processes, as the development of air Slovakia and Hungary). The latter states witnessed many transport has enabled efficient and rapid very long-range years of control by the communist regime: air transport exchanges of persons and goods (Debbage, 1994; Goetz was not a priority transport mode, which was reflected in and Graham, 2004). Since the 1970s, continuous growth its not being particularly important. The dramatic political, has been observed in the number of transported persons economic, social and cultural changes after the fall of the and goods, growth in transport performance, as well as in Iron Curtain in 1989 and 1990, however, did highlight the average distance covered by air transport. Such recent the role of air transport in the transport market. The abrupt growth was only hindered, albeit temporarily, by principal reasons included the opportunity to travel to recent economic crises, especially recognised in 1997/1998 Western countries, the growth of international tourism, and 2008 (Dobruszkes and Van Hamme, 2011). Generally the increase in available income and the integration into speaking, the economic crises had a stronger effect on international economic structures. The accession of these the volume of transport in goods than in the transport of countries to the European Union in 2004 was the final persons. Apart from those general trends, air transport expansion of the liberalised air transport market to Central has seen major organisational changes that have been Europe (Jankiewicz and Huderek-Glapska, 2016): hence, caused by its deregulation and liberalisation. The joint air transport registered a very dynamic development in effects of these changes include the development of airline the number of transported persons and goods (Grenčíková hubs, the concentration of flight connections by major et al., 2011). The air transport market in Central Europe airlines, the development of airline alliances, as well as also became attractive to foreign airlines, although several the development of low-cost carriers (LCCs) and secondary authors, such as Dobruszkes (2009), claim that the area was airports (Thompson, 2002). As such, the deregulation of air a rather secondary market for those airlines. The arrival of transport can be recognised as the most important change major competing airlines and LCCs in this market did bring in the spatial organisation of air transport: in fact, Alderighi problems to some of the traditional national airlines. This et al. (2005) claim that such changes were influenced by a is documented by the bankruptcy of the Hungarian flag number of spatial causes and effects. carrier Malév, which went out of business in 2012. a Department of Geography, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Czech Republic (*corresponding author: S. Kraft, email: [email protected]) 26 2016, 24(4)24(4): 26–37 MORAVIAN GEOGRAPHICAL REPORTS The Central European air transport market currently of seasonality in the offer of flights in selected airports in shows rather considerable dynamics which are the result Central Europe. Changes in the accessibility of destinations of its geopolitical location, recent history and contemporary during the year and in the structure of flight offers from integration tendencies. The development of smaller the perspective of type of carrier are also discussed. The and secondary airports in the region delivered direct airports have been selected to reflect the natural differences consequences in the better accessibility of air transport; on in their functions in the air transport system (major airline the other hand, it did cause major fluctuations in the seasonal hubs, regional airports, etc.). Seasonal fluctuations in the offer of flights. The fluctuations are typically related to the offer of air transport and the corresponding changes in the high season of tourism (Reichard, 1988; Wensveen, 2007). accessibility of final destinations are the basics for a typology Therefore, some airports tended to see considerable change of the airports in terms of their function in the air transport in the number of flights and the structure of carriers, as system. The conclusions present a synthesis of the issues well as offers of available destinations during the year. For being addressed and recommendations for further research. example, smaller airports usually show a higher frequency of flights in the summer months than in other seasons. Those 2. Current changes in the organisation trends, however, are also recognised in major airports where both regular and charter flights are made. of air transport and its spatial impacts The overall topic is quite complicated as it results from In the past five decades, the air transport system has an accumulation of several conditions (e.g. the position undergone major changes which have affected its current and function of the airport, the strategies adopted spatial organisation. These changes have been caused by individual airports and carriers, etc.). The topic of primarily by the deregulation and liberalisation of air seasonal fluctuation in the offer of flights is therefore one transport. The deregulation was typical mainly for the of the major research areas from a geographic point of United States where the goal of deregulation was the view (Papatheodorou, 2002; Page, 2005). This discussion elimination of regulation controls (e.g. ticket prices). indicates that Central Europe represents a unique space The liberalisation (typical for the European Union) of air for research on changes in air transport, as the processes transport represents a number of measures that permit airlines to offer flights to any destination, in any country and occurred quite recently and rather very quickly: general at any price (Seidenglanz, 2010). This also affected by a major discussions are presented by Pucher (1999) and Jankiewicz change, as prior to deregulation, the air transport market in and Huderek-Glapska (2016). a country was typically closed and it would be controlled by This paper has several aims. It focuses on an examination one flag carrier. Furthermore, flag carriers would receive of the offer of air transport in selected airports in the support from the country’s budget. Prior to deregulation, Central European region. The principal goal is an analysis international air transport was for the most part based on the of seasonality in the offer of flights during 2014 considering existence of bilateral contracts between individual countries. the different positions and functions of the airports within As flag carriers did not feel any danger from competitors, the air transport system. The subject airports are Frankfurt- air transport was rather expensive before deregulation Hahn (HHN), Rostock-Laage (RLG), Salzburg (SZG), (Burghouwt and Huys, 2003). Gradual deregulation is related Prague (PRG), Pardubice (PED), Brno (BRQ), Vienna (VIE), to the introduction of freedom to air transport. Currently, Bratislava (BTS), Warsaw (WAW) and Debrecen (DEB). nine ICAO freedoms of the air have been defined (e.g. to The authors also focus on changes in the accessibility of transport passengers in a foreign country, etc.). destinations throughout the year, as well as structural Deregulation of air transport started in the late 1970s in characteristics of the airports from the perspective of the United States and in the 1990s in the European Union. services

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